7 Celebrities Get Real About Their Struggles With Anxiety

Anxiety disorder is no joke. It's the most common mental disorder in the U.S. (about 18 percent of the population deals with it, according to the National Institutes of Health), and it manifests in many ways, including through panic attacks, social anxiety disorder, and full-blown depression.

1. Emma Stone

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La La Land's ingénue Emma Stone opened up in a 2015 interview with the Wall Street Journal about suffering from crippling anxiety as a kid. "It was really bad," she said. "I would ask my mom to tell me exactly how the day was going to be, then ask again 30 seconds later." To cope, she started acting to help her focus. "Acting forces me to sort of be like a zen master," Stone said. "What is happening right in this moment?"

2. Sarah Silverman

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With a resume as gut-bustingly funny as Sarah Silverman's, it's hard to believe that the comedian struggled with serious depression when she was a teen. "My whole perspective changed," she told Glamour about the onset of the illness. "I went from being the class clown to not being able to see life in that casual way anymore." Silverman struggled with depression again in her twenties as a writer on SNL. "Since then I've lived with depression and learned to control it, or at least to ride the waves as best I can," she said. "The dark years and those ups and downs—chemical and otherwise—have always informed my work; I believe being a comedian is about exposing yourself, warts and all."

This is how Real Housewives' Teresa Giudice stays zen:

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3. Adele

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Adele is a powerhouse performer who also happens to suffer from serious anxiety attacks before she hits the stage (before shows she's escaped through fire exits and even projectile vomited on someone, according to Rolling Stone). To cope, she turns to Beyoncé—or rather her own version of Beyoncé's alter egos Sasha Fierce and June Carter. "I was about to meet Beyoncé and I had a full-blown anxiety attack," she told Rolling Stone. "Then [Beyoncé] popped in looking gorgeous, and said, 'You're amazing! When I listen to you I feel like I'm listening to God.'...I went out on the balcony crying hysterically, and I said, 'What would Sasha Fierce do?' That's when Sasha Carter was born."

4. Lena Dunham

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Lena Dunham is a champion for both body positivity and mental health awareness. While filming season five of Girls, she took to Instagram to explain the brain-body connection that keeps her in the gym. "[Exercise] has helped with my anxiety in ways I never dreamed possible," she wrote. "To those struggling with anxiety, OCD, depression: I know it's mad annoying when people tell you to exercise, and it took me about 16 medicated years to listen. I'm glad I did," she continued. "It ain't about the ass, it's about the brain." (Tone up, beat stress, and feel great with Rodale's new With Yoga DVD.)

5. Amanda Seyfried

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The actress isn't afraid to get real about using medication to deal with her OCD. In an October interview with Allure, she discussed using Lexapro, an SSRI commonly used to treat anxiety and depression. "I'll never get off of it. Whether it's placebo or not, I don't want to risk it," she said. She went on to address the stigma of using medication to manage mental health issues: "What are you fighting against? Just the stigma of using a tool? If you can treat it, you treat it."

6. Kristin Stewart

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Stewart has built a personal brand totally based on her "f*ck it" attitude, but her mental state is something she doesn't mess around with. "I went through so much stress and periods of strife. I would have panic attacks...I literally always had a stomach ache," she told Elle UK. "I just grew out of it, but that's not to say I don't get worried."

7. Mara Wilson

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As part of the UROK Project, child star Mara Wilson opened up about the anxiety, OCD, and depression she's struggled with since childhood. "I wish someone had told me that it's okay to be anxious, that you don't have to fight it," she said. "I wish that I had fought my depression and not fought my anxiety as much...when you understand that [anxiety] is just this false alarm in your body, then you can work with it, then you can overcome it."

Macaela MackenzieMacaela Mackenzie is a freelance journalist specializing in health, culture, and tech, and she regularly contributes to outlets like Prevention, Women’s Health, Shape, Allure, Men’s Health, the John Hopkins Health Review, and more.

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